Murder and the 2018 Election in Mexico
Lately I've been trying to follow a bit more of the local news here, yet still "live" like we're on holidays. So it was only natural that this headline caught my eye:
No alcohol sales in Cancun, Riviera Maya as of Saturday
BY RIVIERA MAYA NEWS ON JUNE 25, 2018
Source
Cancun and the surrounding area is a huge tourist destination, so what could possibly be happening to cancel all alcohol sales? The answer I found was shocking.
Cancun, Q.R. — Alcohol sales throughout the country will be on hold this weekend as the presidential elections take place.
What? Because of an election you can't buy alcohol? Now, I don't need to buy alcohol, but I couldn't quite understand the reasoning here. Further in the article was this,
The dry law is put into place for elections for public safety on election day.
But that still didn't clarify things too much for me, so I started a little digging and was again shocked to see the results.
Global News on June 27th, published this report:
Mexico’s election is racking up a historic body count of politicians
Gangs are playing a bloody role in shaping the future of Mexico by assassinating dozens of politicians ahead of country-wide elections on July 1. At least 120 politicians have been murdered since September, including 18 mayoral candidates...The majority of the victims were assassinated on the campaign trail or gunned down before they could officially register as political candidates.
120 politicians murdered since September!!
It didn't take long to figure out that those politicians who voice opposition to the drug cartels are the ones who are singled out. And it's those running in local elections that are often in more danger because they are not fortunate enough to have bodyguards in place or able to work in the secure Saint Lazarus Legislative Palace (equivalent to the House of Representatives or House of Commons).
Here is a simple pie chart showing the Political aggression by level of government during the nine-month electoral period, (ETELLEKT) with the greatest percentage in Municipal versus State and Federal.
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In the small area of Quintana Roo where we are, there are actually 52 candidates running to fill the 11 municipalities' seats.
Source
You can see how little this area is, so imagine that number in all the others as well. So I wondered if any of those killed were campaigning here, because it's well known that the cartel has a firm grip on this area, not only with the drug trade, but also the local "protection racket" and "legitimate" businesses used for money laundering. It is also common knowledge that they "own" most of the police force as well.
Sadly, this article was published minutes ago:
Threatened police reporter killed in Quintana Roo, Mexico ahead of general elections
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His job was reporting "police issues", and his murder occurred just yesterday when he was in a bar in the area of Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Quintana Roo
Source
While living in Playa del Carmen, he had received telephone threats for three weeks and went to the local authorities/police, but no protective measures were put in place. Being a journalist in Mexico is apparently a very dangerous occupation; 7 journalists have been assassinated in Mexico this year and one is still currently missing.
Source
So, back to this election. In this article just published today, the stats are even more staggering, as
At least 130 politicians running for local and state positions in the July 1 general and presidential elections have been killed since the beginning of the 2018 campaign period in September.
In a beautiful little island retreat, off the coast of Cancun, Isla Mujeres was home of another political assasination on June 12th; Rosely Magana was shot at a political event and later succumbed to her injuries. Source
Of course there are many other stories, but these two are very close in proximity to where we live. So in the end it begs the question: Is removing alcohol the solution to this? I'm not trying to be facetious with that question, but it does seem that there is a much bigger threat and much bigger problem going on than alcohol abuse, but perhaps it's just too big of a problem to fix ?
What are the answers then?
And maybe as important, because this is such a popular tourist destination for many around the world, do we have some sort of responsibility to help? to be concerned? or at the very least, to be aware?
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Crazy stuff. Hopefully the US will settle down some with all the heated rhetoric. People inciting violence don't know the path they are starting down...
It's too bad that it can't just be fact based rhetoric, but I suppose there's not much entertainment in that! sarcasm :)
I think politics are becoming more heated everywhere lately. The news from the U.S is taking some pretty interesting turns. That is if you can wade through all the soap opera atmosphere. I seem to run into civil war chatter at every turn.
I was just telling someone that after being being pretty much unplugged for a couple weeks the difference in tone is very noticeable to me.
I guess it is not a great time to be in politics.
I love your concept of permanent vacation. And I just learned vital information. When in Mexico stock the cabinet before elections.
hahaha so true!!
I'd say the last US election sure came close to some gun fights, and it just got crazier from there. The "civil war chatter" is kind of scary, don't you think?
Yes, a permanent vacation is sometimes the way to go...unplugged, disconnected, just ignorantly enjoying it all :)
I have decided that ignorance is truly bliss. Gonna practice my ostrich routine now
hahaha that's the spirit!!
Just get lost on steemit and stay away from the news and other social media. It's done wonders for my stress level lately. LoL
haha that's exactly what I've been doing lately as well @the-witty-waiter :)
Heck, I hardly have time anymore for the depressing stuff now that I'm trying to compete with the leaderboard of the engagement league. LoL. Keeping my eye on the prize 🙄
haha I thought I heard someone breathing heavy behind me :)
Thats just a little crazy @lynncoyle1 so many murders of what appears to people trying to do the right thing. It sad that while it is a popular holiday destination the rest of the world is too busy to sort itself out let alone help others. I hope you get some decent politicians votes in and surviving.
It is crazy, isn't it?! I haven't heard of anything bad on election day, so we'll just have to wait and see what happens next.
Fingers crossed nothing bad to any of the candidates.
I haven't heard of anything, thank goodness!
Okay. That's just plain horrifying.
Do you know when the dry law went into effect? I have no idea, but if I had to guess, it probably dates back a while, before the cartels got such a stranglehold on the country.
As you now being down there, many people don't need a reason to drink, they just do it. So, when there might be a reason, it gets worse.
Now, what I'm wondering is, what about the other candidates that are still alive? Does that mean they're all in the back pockets of the cartels, or are they just a little better at being discreet. And wouldn't it behoove those candidates who are wanting to do something about the cartels to find a better way to communicate that?
On the local levels, I could see where there would be little or no protection whatsoever. That's just going to perpetuate the lawlessness. It's amazing that you can still find people willing to stand up. It can't be because they don't expect something will happen to them.
I think you definitely should be aware and do what you can to avoid getting into the crossfire. What I'm not sure is, what do you do about it? It's going to take an iron will and a lot of fire power to do much damage to the cartels, and I don't know, if it's such a huge problem as you describe, if Mexico actually does it alone.
Exactly my thoughts!
I'm not sure how long the law has been in existence. We went out for a short walk on Sunday and it was eerily quiet with a definite police presence. It was a very strange feeling and we actually accidentally wandered by a polling station too. It was so strange!!
I hope that means no violence then, since that's what the law is supposedly there for. Any activity at the polling place? I'm wondering what turn out was like, especially in a presidential election year. Looks like the third time is a charm for López Obrador. I don't expect things will take a turn for the better for Mexico, even if he is supposedly a reformist. I'm going to guess he's not going to be very friendly to Trump, or the US, for that matter.
Well, I'm glad you are safe, despite the eeriness of the situation. There are places in Latin America that are in far worse shape, and hopefully Mexico doesn't head in that direction.
I've yet to hear of anything happening here, but I haven't looked at news from other places yet. We walked by just one polling station, and there were plenty of people lined up and milling about, and we noticed a police truck driving by very slowly. Back home, the police presence would put me at ease, but here, it often creates the exact opposite feeling unfortunately.
No, I don't believe that Lopez Obrador is a Trump supporter. Should be interesting. There's a general dislike for Trump with just about everyone you talk to here.
Thank you; it was one of the first times I've ever felt uncomfortable here; I can't say "unsafe", but we were certainly on guard.
The times we've flown into the airport in Mexico City, we've spotted the armed soldiers there (way too equipped for a police force). You don't see that in any of the airports I've flown in and out of in the states. While it does give a sense of security, it also puts you a little on edge, as if there's a higher expectation of something going wrong. In the end, better to have them there than not, but that still doesn't feel all that good to say.
I know what you mean about the police force. Way too much corruption going on.
I don't doubt that there's no love for Trump. Generalizing everyone who comes into the US, legally or not, as criminals and rapists isn't the best way to make friends and influence people. That said, I still believe we should be a country of laws, and until the laws change on immigration, that they should be followed. It's not just drugs or human trafficking or other forms of contraband that finds its way in and out of here because of the insecurity (and any of that is certainly bad enough), there's also the possibility of terrorists and all of what they bring. The problem is, when the borders aren't secure, you don't know what's coming through.
And Mexico has its own immigration laws, of which you will be aware of. They expect non-citizens to adhere to them. So, there's enough gamesmanship happening on all sides of the issue that makes it at once kind of entertaining, but mostly annoying. :)
The violence around all the elections is a terrible thing. When corruption runs as deep as it does in Mexico, it will always be an issue. there is no openness with what the politicians are doing it is all behind closed door.
People turn a blind eye to corruption thinking it does not involve or concern them so why should they care, as long as they get their cut of the pie.
Banning the sale of Alcohol prior to and during the Election only gives the liquor stores a chance to increase the prices, and then to take a few days off, to enjoy the weather, and spend their extra profits, buy now before it is banned sales that are not sales.
Yes, I don't think there's going to be a change any time soon; corruption just runs too deep. And you're right, there's too many already getting a piece of the pie to turn back now.
This is so sad. It seems the people that could solve the problem are in the worst danger. So much corruption these days at home and abroad and those that are already in power are either part of the problem or are not working hard enough to solve it. A definite catch 22
That's it exactly! A catch 22! Thank you for that insight :)
That's intense! I know elections can get heated around here, but at least people don't get murdered... most of the time.
Stay safe out there!
We stocked up at the liquor store yesterday and haven't left the house since haha
Kidding. It is crazy and I feel like the last US election came close to this! I had no idea it was this bad.
Smart. Get the booze while you can.
I'm dreading the next election cycle. Regardless of which person gets elected to the office, we all lose. We're subjected to all the elections nonsense for 1.5 - 2 years! It's an everyday thing where we get updates and all the back and forth, blah, blah, blah. It's just so draining. Honestly, I think people would be a lot happier if the election cycle was two months at the most! Get your message out, then get on with it. Let's stop spending all this money on traveling around and giving speeches. How about you just get to work and make things better?
Goodness, gracious!
I would have to agree. It just becomes a terrible soap opera after a while!
Too many got killed in just a span of months, that's absurd... Politics this days are into dirty plays.
Stay safe there @lynncoyle1 :)
It is absurd, isn't it? We went out for a walk on one of the two election days and it was so quiet and lots of police around. It was all too weird and we just went back home to our safety :)
This is common to us. There is a liquor ban when there are elections held be it local or national to avoid violence. That is a good move by your government. Better safe than sorry.
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Coming from Canada, I had never heard of that before. But yes, it's probably a very good idea!
So weird ... I guess they feel emotions tend to run wild when people have had to much to drink ... I know the last wine night I had ... I almost let my emotions get the best of me ... and gave someone a piece of my mind ... it wouldn’t have been good ... lol
hahaha alcohol will do that!! It was very weird here on election day...way too quiet compared to normal.